Comparison of Ultrasound-guided Thoracic Paravertebral and Erector Spinae Plane Block Alone and in Combination on Analgesia After Video-assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery

Video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) has become a common procedure in thoracic surgery. Severe postoperative pain may be encountered in patients undergoing VATS. Analgesic methods such as thoracic paravertebral block (TPVB), intercostal block and erector spina plane block (ESPB) are widely used for VATS. Among these methods, ultrasound (US) guided TPVB is the most preferred method. Generally, comparisons are made between ESPB and TPVB in studies and the analgesic effect is evaluated. However, no research could be found in the literature combining ESPB and TPVB. The mechanisms of regional analgesia techniques used after thoracic surgery operations are also different from each other. Therefore, it may be possible to obtain a more effective analgesic effect in patients by combining the mechanism of action of TPVB and ESPB, as in the multimodal analgesia method. This study seeks to evaluate the effect of TPVB, ESPB and combined TPVB-ESPB pain after VATS.